M
ost Canadians have little
appreciation of our pro-
found daily dependence
on space systems. We are
ill-prepared to meet the
challenges and seize the opportunities
presented by today's complex space do-
main and without nationally focused space
governance, the essential opportunities for
Canada to be a valued contributor might
never be fully realized.
This article is based on a Department of
National Defence (DND) Mobilizing In-
sights in Defence and Security (MINDS)
Expert Briefing Series paper which ex-
plores Canada's critical dependencies on
space-based systems and highlights the
lack of a comprehensive, co-ordinated and
20 DECEMBER 2022/JANUARY 2023 www.vanguardcanada.com
SPACE
VISIONS FOR SPACE
BY JEFF DOOLING, ANDRE DUPUIS, SCOTT
JONES, JAMES PECK AND NEVEN VINCIC
REVITALIZING CANADA'S
fully supported national plan for advanc-
ing Canadian space capabilities. Canada's
space capabilities, although strong in a
number of niche areas, are siloed by a lack
of synergy between departmental objec-
tives. An overarching national vision for
the future of Canada's use of space-based
capabilities that encompasses civil, com-
mercial and national security/defence
needs has never been articulated. Canada
needs a nationally focused framework for
space governance, and equally as impor-
tantly, a fully supported plan that enables
the vision. Canada's allies and competitors
are seizing the space agenda with new na-
tional space policies and strategies, while
Canadian government departments com-
pete to fund their own internally focused
mandates, absent a unifying vision.
Space – Out of Sight and Out
of Mind
Canada is wholly reliant on space-based
systems for a wide range of critical daily
activities. Space connects us, enables busi-
ness to function and helps move people,
goods and information, all on a global
scale. The internet, cellphones and navi-
gation, to name just a few, are all enabled
by space-based technologies, yet that fact
is obscure to most.
What would happen if Canada lost its ac-
cess to, or use of, satellites? GPS naviga-
tion systems would be unavailable. Clocks
would not synchronize to a universal stan-
dard time. Cellphones would lose signals
